In 1709 (or was it 1710?) the Statute of Anne created the first purpose-built copyright law. This blog, founded just 300 short and unextended years later, is dedicated to all things copyright, warts and all. To contact the 1709 Blog, email Eleonora at eleonorarosati[at]gmail.com

Wednesday, 21 May 2014

Authors Alliance Launch

If there are any 1709 readers
in the San Francisco Bay Area today, I highly recommend attending the launch of
the Authors Alliance.

Authors Alliance Logo

A fundamental reason for
becoming an author is the desire that other people consume and enjoy your work.
Unfortunately, increasingly authors face legal and practical barriers that
reduce their ability to reach a large audience. Authors may find their works
are out of print, are un-digitized, and subject to copyrights that were signed
away many years ago. Likewise, some authors may feel conflicted about whether
to publish in outlets that maximize public access to their works or outlets
that maximize peer-review and prestige.

The Authors Alliance is a
non-profit organization that hopes to reduce these barriers and ensure that
works of authorship are disseminated broadly. Hence the organization’s slogan
is: “Promoting authorship for the public good by supporting authors who write
to be read”. To do this, the organization will provide “information and tools
designed to help authors manage key legal, technological and institutional
aspects of the dissemination of works of authorship in the digital age”. In
particular, the Alliance’s efforts will focus on ensuring the digitization of works;
advising authors who wish to make their works publicly available and reusable;
supporting journals, libraries, and archives that help readers discover
authors; and advocating that authors are properly credited and attributed for
their works. Full details can be found at the organization’s website.

Inside the beautiful former Christian Science Church

that now homes the Internet Archive.

The Alliance is also not to be confused
with the Authors Guild. Authors Guild board member, T.J. Stiles, has already criticized
the Alliance’s mission for trying to reduce copyright protections and limit
remedies for copyright infringement.

The official launch is taking
place at the Internet Archive in San Francisco on Wednesday May 21 from 6.30pm
to 9pm. It is expected that a host of copyright reform proposals will be
announced. For those who can attend in person, reservations can
be made here. For everyone else, the launch will be broadcast live here from
7.15pm PT.

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